Bed table unit



.Tan.29,1946. H DYETT ETAL 2,393,598

'BED TABLE UNIT Filed Feb. 19, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 i ll 4 I ATTORNEY-S Jan. 29, 1946. DYETT ET AL 2,393,598

BED TABLE UNIT 1 Filed Feb. 19, 1945' 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Ll/l/I/I/ll/ll/A ATTORNEY 5 Patented Jan. 29, 1946 BED TABLE UNIT James H. Dyett and Boyd A. Doty, Buffalo, N. Y., assignors to Hard Manufacturing Company,

Buffalo, N. Y.

Application February 19, 1943, Serial No. 476,414

1 Claim.

This invention relates to improvements in table units of that type which are mounted on a movable or portable toilet cabinet or stand in a position to project laterally outward therefrom so that by placing the stand beside a bed, the table will extend over the bed in position for use by a person occupyingthe bed. The rooms of hospitals and other institutions are frequently furnished with small portable or movable stands or cabinets in which toilet or other articles are contained for the convenience of the room occupants or nurses in administering to the needs of Patients. Some such stands or cabinets are equipped with a folding table or shelf adapted to occupy a position out of the way close to the cabinet when not in use, and to be supported in an operative position projecting horizontally out from the stand so that. if the stand is moved beside the bed, the table will project over the bed in position for use by the person in the bed. As heretofore constructed, such cabinets or stands have had to be made with special parts or provision for mounting the table thereon, and the tables could not be readily or economically applied to cabinets not designed or constructed for the purpose. Also the table could only be mounted in a single prearranged location on the stand.

One object of our improvement is to provide a practical, desirable and inexpensive table unit for such purposes, which can be easily and at small cost, mounted on a toilet cabinet or stand at the back or either side thereof without requiring the cabinet or stand to be of special construction, or to be especially equipped for'the application thereto of the folding table.

Another object of the invention is to produce a bed table unitof simple and inexpensive construction such that it can be made mainly of wood and with the minimum of metal parts, and can be readily fastened in place on the stand or cabinet, as by means of ordinary screws or bolts.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following specification of the preferred embodiment of the invention, shown in the accompanying drawings, and the novel features of the invention are set forth in the appended claim.

In said drawings:

Fig. l is a perspective view illustrating a stand or cabinet equipped with a folding bed table unit embodying the invention, and showing by full and broken lines the possibility of locating the table unit at different sides of the stand or cabinet.

Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof, showing the table in its operative position.

Fi 3 is a fragmentary front elevation, partly in section, showing the table unit and the side portion of the stand to which it is mounted.

Fig. 4 is a side elevation, partly in section thereof, showing the table-supporting bracket in its folded position.

Fig. 5 is a sectional elevation of the device on line 5--5, Fig. 3.

Fig. 6 is a detail section on line 68, Fig. 3.

Fig. 7 is a sectional plan view of the unit on line 'l'l, Fig. 5.

It represents a portable stand, which may be in the nature of a cabinet, either of open front or closed type, and may be of any suitable form or construction adapted for containing toilet or other articles.

The bed table unit is made of a construction adapting it to be mounted or fastened on the cabinet at the back or either side thereof. This table unit comprises a guide device or structure l which is stationarily secured to a vertical side or back wall of the cabinet and provides a. support and guide for a post or standard l2 which is vertically adjustable on the guide device, and carries the folding table l3 at its upper end or portion.

Preferably, the guide device is formed by a relatively long, narrow, vertical board or piece l4 and two vertical side spacing strips or cleats l5, which are stationarily fixed or secured on the cabinet, as by bolts or screws 16 passing through holes in a vertical wall I! of the cabinet, and through registering holes in the side strips I5 and board I4. The board and side strips thus form a vertical guideway IS in which the carrying post or standard l2 for the table is slidably fitted so that it is supported in upright position on the stand and adapted to be adjusted vertically to different positions in the guideway. As shown, the post l2 consists of a vertical narrow bar having a horizontal cross head is rigidly attached in any suitable way on its upper end. The cross head preferably has a horizontal, outwardly projecting portion 29 to which the table it is connected by hinges of any suitable sort to adapt the table to swing from a substantially vertical hanging position close to the guide device, as shown by broken lines, Fig. 3, to a horizontal position in which it projects outwardly from the adjacent side of the cabinet or stand, whereby the table can extend over a bed when the stand is placed beside the latter.

2| represents a bracket or brace which is mounted on the post l2 so that it can be shifted from a position close beside the post, as shown in Fig. 4, to a position in which it projects outwardly beneath the table, when the latter is in its horizontal position, for supporting the table in said position. This bracket, as shown, consists of a vertical plate or member provided at one vertical edge with hinge straps 32 which surround and hingedly connect the bracket to a hinge rod 23 which is supported in sockets or brackets 24 fastened to the outer face of the post 12. The lower socket 24 may have a closed bottom to hold the ringe rod from downward movement in the sockets. As shown, the guide board I4 is notched or cut out at its upper end to accommodate the bracket and its lower hinge parts when the table and its carrying post are in their lowermost adjustments. When the table is in its inoperative hanging position, the hinged supporting bracket is adaptedto occupy a folded back position between the table and the outer face of the post, and when the table is raised or swung up to its horizontal position, the bracket can be swung outwardly beneaththe table so that the table will rest thereon and be thereby firmly supported in its horizontal position. Preferably, the table is provided on its under or inner side with a small wear plate 25 having a downturned side flange 26. When the bracket is swung out to its supporting position beneath the table, an upstanding stop projection 21 on the upper end of the bracket is adapted to strike this flange of the plate and thus arrest the movement of the bracket in its intended supporting position, in which it projects perpendicularly out from the stand or cabinet with its stop projection bearing against the plate 25 on the table.

Catch means are provided for stationarily supporting the table-carrying post l2 in different vertical adjustments on the guide device for holding the table at a desired elevation for use. The catch means illustrated for this purpose comprises an angle or Z-shaped catch 30 which is suitably pivoted at 3|, preferably on an attaching plate 32 fixed or secured by screws or otherwise on the inner face of the post l2, at its lower portion. The catch 30 has a lateral arm or projection 33 at its lower end adapted to enter any one of a vertical series of apertures 34, preferably provided in a metal strip 35 which is suitably se cured on the inner face of one of the spacing strips P of the guide device. An operatin rod 36 is pivoted at its lower end to a lateral arm on the upper end of the catch and extends upwardly therefrom in a suitable channel or cavity 31 in the inner side of the post l2 and upwardly through a hole in the cross head of the post. By pulling this operating rod upwardly, the catch 30 may be disengaged from its holding aperture on the guide device to permit up or down vertical adjustment of the post on its guide, and by releasing or pressing the operating rod downwardly, the catch may be engaged with one of the holding apertures for supporting the table at the desired elevation. Preferably, a spring, such a the coil spring 38 attached to the upper arm of the catch and to the plate 32, urges the catch against the apertured holding strip so that when the catch has been released and the post is moved on its guide, the catch will automatically snap into one of .the apertures when the operating rod and catch are released after adjustment of the post to the desired elevation.

Preferably the table unit is provided with a supporting leg 40 which is suitably formed or attached to the board I4 of the guide device and extends outwardly and downwardly therefrom, and is preferably provided at its lower end with a caster 4| adapted to bear upon the floor. This leg projects outwardly from the stand or cabinet in the same direction that the table projects therefrom when in use, and by bearing on the floor, thus forms a supplemental leg or support for the table which prevents the possibility of the tipping of the stand if the table is too heavily loaded.

By fastening the guide device II at the appropriate elevation on the stand, the auxiliary leg can be readily positioned at the required height for its caster to properly bear on the floor to cooperate with the usual casters of the stand to provide a firm, stable support for the stand and bed table when the latter is in its projecting, operative position.

The table unit as herein disclosed is of simple and inexpensive but practical and desirable construction and can be quickly and easily mounted in place on stands or cabinets of various styles or designs with the minimum labor to provide a folding bed table. The stand or cabinet does not have to be specially designed or made with any special provisions for mounting the folding table thereon at one or another side of the cabinet, as may be desired. All that is required is to place the unit in proper position or adjustment relative to the stand and then bore holes at appropriate marked points in the wall of the cabinet and secure the fastening bolts or screws for the table unit in the holes. Furthermore, all parts of the unit with the exception of the hinges,-the simple catch mechanism and the fastening screws or devices, can be made of wood, thus reducing to the minimum the-use of metal, which may be prohibited or difiicult of acquisition.

We claim as our invention:

A bed table for attachment to the side face of a toilet stand, comprising a guidehaving a channel with an open upper end, and with an open side face which is closed by a side face of said stand when said guide is secured in vertical position with said open face against said side face of said stand, a plate slidable vertically in said channel and extending above its upper end, a lateral flange on the upper end of said plate extending outwardly from the face of said plate opposite from the open side face of said channel, a shelf hinged to the free edge of said flange to form a horizontal extension thereof when raised, and to hang straight down when released, said flange being approximately co-extensive in width with said shelf in a direction parallel to the axis of said hinge, a bracket hinged to the upper end of said plate to swing from a position directly away from said plate and beneath said shelf to support the latter to a position flat against a face of said plate and entirely beneath said flange where it offers no opposition to full dropping of said shelf, and a leg extending from the lower end of said guide entirely beneath said flange and clearing said sh'elf when the shelf is released from the bracket and drops to an approximately straight down position, and below the lower end of the depending shelf extending to a distance somewhat beneath the shelf when the shelf is raised, to resist lateral tilting of the attachment and stand when said sh'elf is raised and loaded.

JAMES H. DYE'I'I. BOYD A. DOTY. 

